Kokutsu dachi – It’s all about the back knee and your core

Big Dom thought he could bring it with a haymaker of death, but his sensei was ready with a strong shuto/kokutso response!

Very often it seems as though your senseis get incredibly picky about the smallest details, and it’s true – they do. But sometimes, the tiniest detail can make all the difference. Take back stance – kokutsu dachi – for example.

My sensei has said to me time again, “Adjust this, or adjust that, but so long as you don’t compromise the back knee.” Having the back knee pushed back so that it is nearly over the back foot is a vital subtlety in how the stance works.

As you know, kokutsu dachi is a back-weighted stance which is often used whilst moving backwards in order to exert force away from the attacker. It’s also used as a transitional stance whilst drawing away to nekoashi dachi (cat stance) or gankaku dachi (crane on a rock stance – sometimes called ippon ashi dachi or one-legged stance).

If kokutsu dachi is improperly set, the back knee can collapse in until it looks more like a long nekoashi dachi than kokutsu dachi. This is a great impediment in your continued movement backwards, and here’s how you can prove it. Stand in kokutsu dachi making sure that your stance is the proper two-shoulders long, and low enough. Turn your back knee so that it faces forwards at 45 degrees or more. Now draw your front foot back and lift it off the floor until you are standing on one leg. You may find a point where your back leg cannot support your weight, or you may feel that the movement doesn’t feel very strong. You may also feel very wobbly as the collapsed knee struggles to support your weight.

Now repeat the movement, but ensure that your back knee is pulled back so that your kneecap is facing at a right angle to the front. See how effortlessly you can draw your stance backwards? The transition and weight-shift from backwards-weighted to all your weight on your back leg, is natural and flowing.

Once that back knee collapses, it's all over. Now, can anyone just tell me when I lost all that hair? 8-(

When your knee collapses in, your weight moves to the inside of your foot, which affects your balance. It also places unhealthy bends in your supporting ankle.

By the same token, if your stomach muscles are too soft and relaxed, you won't maintain good posture as you move. I'll be talking more about that in another tip.

So when your sensei next says to you, “Back knee out.” Pay attention, there’s a good reason for it!